The ember pulsed once more in Jian's palm—
—and then it spoke.
Not in words.
In memories.
Her vision blurred, and suddenly she stood in a hall she had never entered, beside a fire she had never lit. But she knew it.
Alicia's voice whispered from somewhere far and near at once:
"If you're seeing this, then the Tower has opened the first gate… and he knows."
Jian blinked. The image faded.
Jackson caught her arm. "You disappeared for a second. Where did you go?"
"Not where," she said slowly, "but when. Alicia left echoes behind… and I think they're leading us somewhere."
The ember flashed three times.
Once for the Tower.
Once for the River.
Once more—for a place unknown.
The ground trembled again, but this time, it wasn't warning them of danger.
It was pointing the way.
Stone slid apart behind the altar—revealing a stairwell spiraling downward, impossibly deep, lit with sigils that hadn't glowed until now.
Jackson narrowed his eyes. "This wasn't here before."
Jian stepped forward, voice steady. "Because it wasn't ready. We had to pass the trial to unlock the descent."
Jackson looked at her—and then down into the dark.
"Another relic?"
She shook her head. "Something worse. The second vessel… is sealed in time below."
The ember dimmed slightly in her hand.
Afraid.
Jackson's hand tightened on his blade. "Then we go down. We go forward."
But just as they stepped toward the stairwell, the tower whispered.
A dozen voices at once.
Some pleading. Some screaming. One… laughing.
And at the base of the dark, something shifted.
Not the second vessel.
Something older.
A shadow of the Shadow Prince himself—still half-dreaming, half-awake—watching.
And as they descended, the voices behind them faded into a single whisper:
"She's not the only one who left something behind."
Below, time was no longer broken…
It was bleeding.